Vanita grinned at her, and raised her cup. "Great. Want to try some low-fat cocoa coffee?"

Before she could answer, Luella gestured toward the third chair at the dinette table and rose. "Grab a chair and I’ll whip you up some of this good stuff - and some oatmeal, too, if you’d like."

"You don’t have to go to any trouble."

"No trouble at all. I made enough for an army, hoping you two would come down." Jaylynn moved toward the chair, and Luella gave her a gentle swat on the butt as she went by. "Where’s the other fugitive from the chain gang?"

The rookie settled into the chair, her elbows on the table and hands folded in front of her. "Believe it or not, she’s still sleeping."

Vanita reached over and patted her hands. "You look like hell, girl, and don’t let anyone tell you any different. You definitely need some coffee."

At that moment, an over-sized tankard of chocolate-smelling coffee was placed in front of her, and Jaylynn picked it up, took a sip, and smiled with delight. "This is low fat?"

"Yup. Pretty good flavor, huh?" Luella set a bowl of oatmeal in front of her, too, with a spoon, a dish of brown sugar, and a tiny plastic container of raisins. "It’s high in sugar, but not much fat at all."

Jaylynn grinned. "I do believe I’ll be drinking a lot of this from now on." She took another sip. "Yum. It’s great."

Luella lowered herself into her chair. "Got it from that low-fat recipe book Dez gave me for Christmas. I’ve found a couple of good recipes in that. You like raisins in your oatmeal?"

"You bet."

"I can also make you some toast or -"

"No thanks, Luella, this is all right for the moment. I don’t even know how much I’ll be able to eat. Let’s wait and see." She picked up her spoon and scooped some brown sugar onto the oatmeal, then mixed it all together and took a bite.

Vanita took a slurp of her coffee cocoa. "I sure hope you don’t work today."

Jaylynn swallowed. "No, thank goodness. I might’ve had to call in sick. I feel like a truck hit me."

"It’s a shame that man is such an ass," Vanita said. "I can’t believe he’d beat up on two women."

"Well, Van, if you’d seen him when they hauled him away, I think you’d have to admit that he regretted it. With the pounding Dez and Tsorro gave him, he was looking more than a little rough around the edges." She took another bite of the oatmeal. "Mmm, this is so good. Thank you."

The silver-haired woman beamed at her. "You’re welcome, Jay."

They talked for a little while longer, and then Luella cleared away the blonde’s dishes and asked for a favor.

"Sure, what can I help with?"

"Normally I’d have Dez do this, but you’re just as strong. How’s your head feeling?

"Pretty good for the moment."

"Would you feel up to helping us rearrange some furniture?"

"Absolutely. What needs moving?

Fifteen minutes later, when Dez tapped on the back door and poked her head in, the three women were busy in the living room. Vanita stood by giving instructions as Luella and Jaylynn moved two couches and five chairs - two of them recliners - around the room, trying to make them all fit in a sensible way. The tall woman stood in the doorway and watched for a few moments before the blonde looked up from behind a wingback chair and caught sight of her. "Hey, you."

"Hey, yourself."

Luella strode across the room and put her arm around the dark-haired woman’s waist. She looked up at the bandaged eye. "How’s that eye feeling this morning?"

"Besides the little man pounding mercilessly on the backside of it, just fine."

"We need to get you some ice, girl."

Dez inhaled. "I think what I really need is some of that cocoa smelling stuff."

Luella grinned. "I take it you wouldn’t want the coffee I’ve been mixing in it."

"Ahhh... no."

"I can offer you some oatmeal, too."

Dez nodded and followed her wearily into the kitchen with Vanita and Jaylynn on her heels. Suddenly the kitchen was overflowing with people, and she felt claustrophobic.

"Sit down, Dez," Luella said. "Van, sit yourself down over there. You, too, Jaylynn. Give me some room to work here."

The dark-haired woman settled herself at the table in the wooden chair in corner of the kitchen and closed her eyes as the staccato pounding in her temple continued. She opened her eyes, startled, when she felt a cool hand on her forehead. Jaylynn said, "You know, I think you have a fever. Feel her forehead, Luella."

Next thing Dez knew, the three women were fussing over her, agreeing that she did, indeed, have a fever. Luella disappeared from the room for a moment, then came back and handed the blonde a cell phone. "Here. Give Colette a call, Jay, and get us some free advice."

"I’m fine," the tall cop said in an obstinate voice.

"Yeah, yeah," her landlady said. "If you’re so fine, then why are you in such pain?"

"It’ll pass."

"Listen, you stubborn ox. If you can reduce the pain, then you’ll heal quicker than sitting here tense as all get-out. Tell her your mom’s number."

Wearily, Dez recited the numbers, and Jaylynn was soon talking with Colette Reilly. In the meantime, Luella dished up a small bowl of oatmeal and set it before the dark-haired woman. Dez picked it up, cradled it in her hand, and took small bites. Before she had eaten half of it, she put it down and closed her eyes. Why is this pounding so much?

Luella set a steaming cup of hot cocoa in front of the dark-haired woman and stood next to her, one soft hand on the back of her neck. "Why don’t you try to get some of that down, kiddo. Take in some calories. You need ’em."

Jaylynn said goodbye to Dez’s mother and flipped the phone shut. "She says that we should meet her down at her clinic, and she’ll take a look. She said it could be a lot of things - infection, complications, or something like that."